Effects of surgery on the function of maxillary sinus mucosa

For chronic maxillary sinusitis, the most popular surgical approach for treatment is endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS). After these operations, however, it is not clear how well the surgery restores the normal mucociliary function. We examined the mucociliary clearance (MCC) in maxillary sinuses in chronic sinusitis before ESS and 6 months after the operations. The correlation of histology to MCC was also studied. Measurements of the mean residual mucociliary clearance (MCC) of maxillary sinuses was studied pre- and postoperatively with an isotope method. Biopsies taken during ESS and 6 months postoperatively were studied by electron microscopy (EM). Preoperative residual MCC from the maxillary sinuses was 77 +/- 26% (mean +/- SD). Six months postoperatively, residual MCC was 70 +/- 22%, only slightly better than preoperatively. Residual MCC was considered good (<= 50%) in 12% of sinuses preoperatively and in 20% postoperatively. In preoperative sinuses, 14% did not show any mucociliary clearance compared to 11% postoperatively. As a single EM finding, metaplasia gave the poorest MCC (91%) and microvilli the best (68%). Mucociliary function in maxillary sinusitis remains poor even 6 months postoperatively, with many pathological findings still visible in the sinus epithelium. MCC correlates well with the histology of the mucosa. Surgery does not significantly improve the mucociliary function of sinus mucosa in chronic maxillary sinusitis.